Someone Who's Wonderful
by SamCyberCat
Summary: Martin thinks of all the things Rei has done for him since he came to Duel Academia and tries to find a way to thank her for it all. Martin/Rei.


Notes - Set at the start of season four, before Martin left. The second of two fics done in response to a Rei-bashing story I came across recently that portrayed Rei to be a person she is not in order to make the Juudai/Asuka pairing look good and her to look evil. These stories will deal with Rei's relationships with Juudai and Martin as I think they are. In particular the bashing fic made it look like Rei abused Martin to get him to do what she wanted, this story deals directly with that notion.

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Why was nothing good enough?

He had to admit to himself that, when it came down to it, he was just a student. He had a budget he could work with but really he couldn't be expected to fork out large sums of money.

Though part of him wanted to.

But no, this would be more than enough to use as a gift.

And finally he'd be able to pay Rei back for everything she'd done.

He shuddered just thinking about it. There was no way anything could be enough, even if he'd had all the money in the world…

How did he even meet a girl like her?

Thinking back the image came clear into his mind. That girl in the Red uniform, chasing after him with a box lunch, demanding that he should eat it to help him feel better because he looked ill.

Martin had heard what other girls thought of Rei. They thought she was pushy because she involved with other people's business where it wasn't her place to do so. That this somehow meant Rei was not a proper lady, like they apparently were.

But for all he might have been shocked at how forward she was in her friendship, Martin didn't feel that way about her. He was glad of the influence Rei had on his life.

After Yubel had possessed him everyone knew who Martin was. He was the kid that turned everyone into the zombies. But it wasn't his fault - he was just misunderstood. And ever since that event people who he'd never spoken to before suddenly wanted to know him, because they felt as though they had to befriend him.

This sort of friendship wasn't what Martin wanted. Before he'd been possessed none of them knew who he was, or cared who he was for that matter. Rei had cared though. She'd forged a friendship with him just because she thought he looked pale… Was that the reason?

She hadn't left after that. She was always trying to help him. For some reason she cared, and it had been a long time since Martin had come across someone who genuinely cared for him.

Even the issues Martin had with her father she'd understood. He was sure he'd never spoken to her about him, but when Napoleon finally started to show that he cared for his son Rei was right behind him. Even though it meant running into a school that was infested with zombies.

When it was all over, and he'd finally been able to be honest with his father, she had snuck in to see if it had gone all right for him. She thought he hadn't noticed but he'd seen her…

And what had she asked for in return for everything she'd done for him?

The only time Rei had asked Martin for anything was for him to escort her to the toilet when she was scared in the other world. Compared to everything she'd done for him that was nothing.

And then what he did to her next…

He'd almost got her killed!

Well, it hadn't been him truly. Yubel had struck out against Rei, but it was still Martin's body that she'd used to do it.

If it hadn't been for the brave actions of Juudai and the students from the other academies than she would have died. And it was all down to something he had done.

Had she blamed him for it?

It would be unthinkable to consider that she would do.

She still looked at him with those same caring eyes, she still wanted to make his problems her own problems, and she still wanted to make his life worth living.

How could he look at her knowing that she still cared after everything that he'd done to her?

It was impossible for any present to thank her for it all. And as much as she never blamed him enough to consider that she had to forgive him, how could any action he could do now be enough for him to forgive himself for what he'd done?

When his father told him they'd be returning home at last he knew that as wonderful as it was to finally have a chance to fix his family life this would also be his last chance to say thank you to her. Because without her he might never have had this chance with his family at all.

He had considered making something at first, like the stamina lunch she had made for him when they'd first met, but Martin found that cooking was not his forte. And neither was making anything by hand. Any teddy bear he tried to sew ended up looking like the Stuffed Animal card come to life.

So, begrudgingly, he'd had to settle for a bought present.

It wasn't the worst thing in the world, at least he knew Rei well enough to know that she'd probably like this. She was a bit of a girlie girl; there was no hiding that. And any girl who designed her own school uniform must appreciate clothes.

That was where he was in luck. As some of the best designers in the world were from his home country. People would flock for miles to get clothes that had been made in Paris, France, and while French companies were popping up all over the world nothing felt as genuine as the real thing.

He was no designer himself, but after hours pouring over the catalogues he thought he found something that he thought would be good enough for her. Now it had arrived, and he had worked up the nerves to present it to her.

He held out the box through shaky arms, and she took it, looking thrilled that he would get her a gift before even knowing what it was. She eagerly took off the bow he had put onto the box, and the gasp she made was audible as she pulled the dress out of it.

"Marchii, this looks wonderful!" Rei called, holding the dress against herself and twirling around.

He blushed.

Pet names – that was another thing Rei gave him that no one else had done before.

"It… was j-just a little something at the last minute," he stammered out, "…Since we might not see each other again…"

She stopped her twirls and looked at him sadly, "What do you mean?"

"You know I'm going back home…" he said, and when she'd nodded he continued, "It's not likely that I'll come back to Japan for a long time after that…"

"So?" Her eyes had narrowed in a determination that he'd not seen from them yet, "What does that mean? We can write to each other all the time, and there are e-mails and phones too. Being in another country doesn't change a thing for us."

"You're sure?" he asked, not sure what to make of how certain she was about this.

Her face softened as she replied, "You're the best friend I've had since I came here. You've never pushed me away or thought that I was too overbearing… Losing contact with someone as wonderful as you would be out of the question."

She thought he was wonderful too…?

"Thank you, for everything," he whispered.

"And thank you too," she replied, he had given her a purpose and someone to care for. She reached down and kissed him on the top of the head.

He froze up. To come here to ask for forgiveness and leave with a close friend, the prospect of his family working out, and his first kiss? Duel Academia had helped his life more than he could ever thank anyone for.


End file.
